


The Race They Worked Towards

by thescatterbrain



Category: Free!
Genre: Drabble, M/M, Olympics, rinharu - Freeform, sharkbait - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-03-16
Updated: 2015-03-16
Packaged: 2018-03-18 02:47:32
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 988
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3553220
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thescatterbrain/pseuds/thescatterbrain
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Just a quick drabble while I work through some block for my current fic</p>
    </blockquote>





	The Race They Worked Towards

**Author's Note:**

> Just a quick drabble while I work through some block for my current fic

This race was the one to settle it all. After years of learning how to move through the water and why they loved it, they had made the national team. After months of grueling training and tweaked diets, the race had finally come. 

Matsuoka Rin stepped up to the starting blocks. In the lane next to him, a familiar rival tucked his hair further into his swim cap and adjusted his goggles. Rin caught his eye and smiled at Haru. There was that excited twinkle in his eyes that he got before any sort of race - Haru just couldn't wait to get into the water and swim his heart out. Rin's smile grew into a toothy grin as they stood on the blocks. 

He still couldn't believe they had made it this far. When he was young - back before Haru and Makoto and the others, back before Iwatobi and Samazuka, Rin thought the Olympics were some far off, unattainable goal. Now here he was, bent over the blocks with his best friend next to him as the starter told them to take their marks, muscles tensed and ready to spring. He felt his breath become more shallow as he waited for the beep and the flash that would tell him to go.

A sharp sound pierced the silence in the pool, a bright light flashed quickly in his peripheral, and Rin sprang off the blocks. His arms swung around, forcing his momentum forward. He kept his eyes trained on one spot in the water and felt his hands lead his entry. Rin began to kick, undulating his hips to bring his feet down hard. His lungs strained, and Rin realized that in his excitement he hadn't taken in enough breath during his start. He came up earlier than he would have liked and began pulling with all his might. 

Twenty-five meters in and Rin could feel a slow burn beneath his thighs as he kicked and his triceps as he extended his arms as far as he could. He kept up his pace and tried to focus on his breathing. Fast race, fewer breaths. He placed his rhythm on his usual three count. One, two, three, breath. Four, five, six, breath. The black line on the bottom of the pool appeared endless. Rin kicked harder. 

The flip turn was coming up soon, and Rin made sure he had enough breath for his underwater this time. He tried to extend it as far as he could before his lungs felt they were about to pop and his fingers and toes went numb. Rin pulled the first stroke, counting diligently _one, two, three _before taking his first breath.__

__The oxygen was a breath of life, and Rin rotated his body back to continue. He had to go faster on this last fifty. Haru was a little ways ahead of him, and Rin wasn't going to let him win. Not after he had given him a huge confident speech about how “Haru wouldn't win this time. Not even on the international level”._ _

__A swimmer from the American team was on Rin's other side, keeping pace with him. Rin knew the American team was good all around, but he wasn't expecting so much competition. Only from Haru did he expect competition._ _

__Seventy-five meters. A quarter of the race to go. Rin was so close, but Haru was closer. Rin set his body into overdrive, kicking down as hard as he could and pulling with all of the strength he had left. His entire body was on fire now. His heart was racing faster than he was and his lungs were searing. Rin was sure that by the time he was out of this race he would be well-done for any cannibals that may be in the stands._ _

__There were ten meters left. Rin put his head down low in the water and stopped taking breaths. He kicked harder than he could ever remember doing. Five meters. Rin stretched his arms further. Three centimeters. Rin squeezed his eyes shut and kicked until he felt his fingertips hit the touchpad. He came up, gasping for air. Wheezing, he squinted up at the large clock. He found his lane and his time. A personal best. Not record-setting in any sense of the word, but he had dropped two seconds. He looked at the American's time, to see that he had out touched them by a few tenths of a second. Rin smirked a bit and gasped some more._ _

__Finally, Rin forced himself to look up at Haru's time. It looked as though Rin managed to catch up towards the end, because there were only two hundredths of a second between them. But in the end, it was Haru who took first in the heat. Rin sighed and looked down at the water, smiling despite himself. He turned to tell the American “good race”, who in turn looked surprised that Rin knew English and smiled as he shook his hand. Rin climbed out of the pool and immediately turned to Haru. He had already pulled off his cap and was shaking out his hair, goggles hanging lazily from his neck. Rin grinned broadly at him and enveloped him in a hug._ _

__“I thought you said you would beat me,” Haru said in his ear. Rin laughed._ _

__“I thought you'd put up a fight.” Not giving him a chance to respond, Rin bent his neck just enough to kiss him. Haru seemed surprised, but kissed back nonetheless. It didn't last too long, but when they pulled away they were being pushed off the bulkhead by officials, all saying that “it was fine to do in private or on the deck as long as they weren't blocking the other swimmers”. They both agreed that there would be no more kissing on the bulkhead and walked off, Rin with his arm over Haru's shoulder and Haru's around Rin's waist._ _


End file.
